Mail-bag receiver.



v WITNESSES- A. V. SIMPSON.

MAIL BAG RECEIVER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 24. 1916.

1,228,840. Patented June 5, 1917.

INVENTOR ATTORNEY ALMA V. SIMPSON, OIE GRANADA, COLORADO.

MAIL-BAG RECEIVER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 5, 1917.

Application filed February 24, 1916. Serial No. 80,247.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALMA V. SiMrsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Granada, in the county of Prowers and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail-Bag Receivers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mail bag receivers and is particularly adapted to receive mail bags which are thrown from mail cars while the cars are-in motion and to be mounted at mail stations along the railroad.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a mail bag receiver which will be provided with means for closing the receiving container when the mail bag is de posited within the container and means for locking the closurewhen it is closed, so that tampering with the contents will be prevented.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a mailbag receiver that will be constructed in the form of a wire basket and will be mounted upon springs, the whole device being constructed with a view to receive the mail bag with the least possible jar.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a mail bag receiver-which consists of comparatively few parts and is simple in construction, but durable and well adapted to withstand the rough usage to which devices of this character are ordinarily subjected.

For a full description of the invention and the advantages and merits thereof, reference is to be had to the following description and the accompanying drawings, wherein is illustrated the preferred form of my invention, in which;

Figure 1 is a side elevation.

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view showing the closure of the container in open position and the relative position of the device with respect to the railway rails.

A platform 1 is provided which may be raised any convenient distance from the ground and a pair of spaced apart expansion springs 2 are mounted upon the platform and the mail bag receiver, which is designated in its entirety by the numeral 3, is mounted upon the expansion springs 2. It is my intention to constructthe mail bag container of heavy wire mesh, the lower part 4 of which will be of cylindrical formation and the upper part 5 being of an nverted dome shape, the whole basket gomg to make up a container which is substantially in the shape of a funnel. The plat form has also mounted thereon a pair of upright guide rods 6 which have one of their ends secured to the platform and their opposite ends extending through guide members 7 which are mounted on the upper edge of the container.

The cover or closure 8 for the top of the basket is mounted upon the hinge 9 at the rear of the basket and is provided with a latch 10 which is adapted to look within a key operated lock 11 attached to the front edge of the top of the basket. A pair of contraction springs 12 are provided which have their ends secured to the end of the closure 8 and their opposite ends secured to the top edge of the basket 3, whereby the closure will be normally held in a closed position.

It will be necessary, of course, to have the closure held in open positionwithin the container and I therefore provide a standard 13 which is secured to the platform and has pivoted thereon the lever arm 14, one of its ends extending beneath the bottom of the cylindrical portion 4 of the basket. One of the leaves of the hinge 9 has a lug15 which is adapted to be received imder the latch 16 which is pivoted upon the end of the bearing arm 17. A link 18 is mounted between the I end of the latch 16 and the end of the lever .14 and this mechanism operates to release the cover 8 when a mail bag is dropped into the container.

Assuming the container to be mounted at the side of the railroad track, and the closure in open position as shown by Fig. 1 of the drawing, it will be observed that when a mail train is passing the point at which the container is mounted and a mail bag thrown from the car door of the mail car into the basket or container, the weight of the bag will cause the springs 2 to compress and the lever 14 to turn on its pivot in the standard 13, whereupon the latch 16 will be released from the lug 15 by virtue of the connecting link 18. The contracting springs 12 will then draw the cover to a closed position where it will be securely locked by the snap lock 11. The mail clerks at the different mail receiving stations will be provided with a key for unlocking the lock 11 and thereby be assured that the contents of the a which embody the preferred form. I desire it tobe understood however, that slight changes or modifications in the minor details of construction may be made Without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims hereunto appended.

I claim:

1. A mail bag receiver including a platform, a container having a fixed bottom normally disposed above the platform in spaced relation thereto, means interposed between the bottom of the receptacle and said platform for resiliently supporting the said container and stationar nide rods carried b the platform and engaging the rim of the said container for assuring vertical springing movement thereof.

2. A mail bag receiver including a platform, a container having a fixed bottom normally disposed above the platform in spaced relation thereto, means interposed between the bottom of the receptacle and said platform for resiliently supporting the said container, a hingedly mounted closure for the top of the container, a catch carried by the closure, and a plurality of levers connected to the said fixed bottom and associated with the catch for releasing the closure when the said bottom of the container is moved outwardly.

3. A mail bag receiver including. a platform, a container arranged in spaced relation to the platform, resilientsupporting means interposed between the platform and the container, guide rods carried by the platform and connected to the said con tainer, a closure for the container, and v means for releasing the closure from open position.

4. A mail bag receiver including a container, means for resiliently supporting the container, guide arms engaging the container and fixedly supported for assuring vertical movement of the container when re ceiving a mail bag, a closure for the top of the container, a lever arm pivotally mounted and having one end engaging the bottom of the container, a mechanism associated with the end of said lever arm and releasably engaging the said closure for releasing the closure from open position.

5. A mail bag receiver including a basket resiliently mounted for vertical springing movement, a closure for saidbasket, a mechanism for releasing said closure from open position, said mechanism being operated by the vertical movement incurred by the resiliency of said basket.

6. A mailbag receiver including a basket resiliently mounted for vertical springing movement, a closure for said basket, a mechanism for releasing said closure from open position, said mechanism being operated by the vertical movement incurredby the resiliency of said basket, including a pivoted lever engaging the bottom of the said basket, and a catch carried by the closure and releasably engaging the said re 7 leasing mechanism.

'7. A mail bag receiver including a basket, a resilient means mounted for the suspension of said basket, a closure for'the top of said basket, spring elements for drawing said closure toa closed position, and means for retaining said closure in open position and adapted to be operated to release said closure by the vertical springing movement of said basket. r

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

r ALMA V. SIMPSON. Witnesses:

J. L. ZINK, M. W. WINES.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

- Washington, D. G. 

